Los Angeles Times, Betsy SharkeyBuck’ a documentary with plainspoken power
Sometimes a film comes along that answers a question that you didn’t realize you had. At the Sundance Film Festival this year, that movie is “Buck,” an exceptional slice of Americana about the charismatic real-life horse whisperer, an earthy, soft-spoken philosopher who can tame troubled souls, be they man or beast.Read complete article >

New York Times, David Carr
You Can Also Lead a Horse to Nirvana. LAST Sunday evening, Buck Brannaman strolled the High Line, two stories above the streets of Manhattan and hundreds of miles from his native habitat, the ranch country where he runs clinics in enlightened horsemanship. The documentary “Buck,” which won a Sundance audience award this year and will open on Friday in New York and Los Angeles, details his shaman-like skills around horses and the people who ride them.Read complete article >

Los Angeles Times, Kenneth TuranSundance gets real: More memorable documentaries come from this festival than anywhere else. This year’s group included “Buck,” “If a Tree Falls,” “The Interrupters,” “Project Nim,” “The Redemption of General Butt Naked,” “Senna” and “We Were Here.” Mention should also be made of non-Sundance docs “Circo” and “Nostalgia for the Light.”Read complete article >

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun Times – The best documentaries of 2011
One of the big documentary hits of the year. Buck Brannaman was the original “horse whisperer,” the character who Nicholas Evans based his novel on and Robert Redford used as the on-set consultant for his film. He has a way with horses, and Cindy Meehl’s documentary is moving as he shows them engaged in dances of understanding.Read complete article >

Bloomberg, Rick WarnerBuck in Top 10 for 2011. “Buck”: A touching documentary about Buck Brannaman, the inspiration for Robert Redford’s equine trainer in “The Horse Whisperer.” Brannaman overcame a Dickensian childhood to become a world-famous horse handler known for his uncanny ability to communicate with the animals.Read complete article >

Wall Street Journal, Joe MorgensternBuck Makes Top 10. “Buck”: Few of us city dwellers ever get to meet the sort of American portrayed in Cindy Meehl’s documentary—a middle-age cowboy who gives horse-training clinics. Even in his own territory, though, Buck Brannaman is one of a kind, a man who has learned to give horses the love he lacked as a child.Read complete article >

When you get to know Templeton Thompson, it’s easy to understand why director Cindy Meehl and so many Nashville heavyweights lined up to help on her new video, “When I Get That Pony Rode,” which took no time racing to No. 1 on CMT.com and generating some serious downloads on iTunes after its release in February. The gal can really sing. The song has heart and soul — and hooks. Read more >

Order your copy today!

The 7 CLINICS with BUCK BRANNAMAN project features over 10 hours of incredible, never-before-seen footage from the making of the award-winning feature film documentary BUCK — the stunningly portrayed story of one man’s quest to help horses with “ people problems” lauded by critics and audiences alike. 7 CLINICS allows riders, trainers, and horse lovers everywhere to travel with Buck from coast to coast while learning his techniques and absorbing countless words of wisdom along the way.

This project came about when we saw how much footage was left on the “cutting room floor”, and we realized we could bring Buck’s message to a larger audience — with the intent of benefiting the horses!

This series, featuring over 10 hours of instructional footage from the making of the feature film BUCK, will be packaged in three sets and sold individually or as a complete set.

SOME SNEAK PEAKS…

From DISC 3. It is Buck’s Introduction piece where he talks about the Release technique.

From DISC 5. “Getting to the Feet”

Director Cindy Meehl talks about 7 CLINICS and why she made the series.

Cine Vue
4 stars, Alexandra Hayward
Buck Brannaman appears to be your average modern-day cowboy; yet in the equestrian world and beyond, he is nothing short of a superstar. In the inspirational and emotionally-charged documentary Buck (2011), the first feature release from Cindy Meehl, we meet an enigmatic man who possesses an extraordinary gift to communicate and heal troubled or misbehaving horses across the United States.Complete article >

London Evening Standard
3 Stars, Derek Malcolm
There’s a whole class of people dedicated to helping owners with their animals. Buck Brannaman, does it the other way round, helping animals with their owners. He is a cowboy, teacher and part-time philosopher, the real-life horse whisperer, and Cindy Meehl’s documentary, supported by Robert Redford, the cinematic horse whisperer, shows how he does it.Complete article >

The Guardian
4 Stars, Catherine Shoard
Saddle up for for a one-way ticket to inspirationville: this Sundance-wowing documentary gives an insight into the real-life horse whisperer, child abuse backstory and all. Buck Brannaman is the sort of copper-bottomed authentic that makes you wonder how we ever swallowed Robert Redford’s blow-dried impression. Half nag, half guru, he burrs wise words about wrangling men and beasts, one’s primal nature and one’s animal altruism. Yet he’s also acid enough to balance out the slight tang of treacle in Meehl’s treatment. There’s a whole heap of Americana to wallow in here, but it’s testimony to the director and subject that Buck still trots along at such a lick. Complete article >

ContactMusic.com
Ostensibly a documentary about a real-life horse whisperer, this film actually has more to say about how people treat each other than how they interact with horses. It’s a strikingly well-made film that entertains us while packing a quiet emotional kick.